Europeans Want to Mend U.S. Relations

Published 8:00 pm, Wednesday, May 21, 2003

Seventeen European presidents on Thursday declared relations with Washington to be of "utmost importance," an apparent effort to heal divisions over Iraq.

The presidents are in Salzburg for a two-day summit on European Union enlargement.

"Given today's situation in the world, we agreed that the close cooperation between Europe and the United States is of utmost importance," Austrian President Thomas Klestil said following a closed-door meeting with his counterparts, including Germany's Johannes Rau.

Germany strongly opposed the Iraq war, a move that angered the U.S. government and marked the lowest point in relations between the allies since the end of World War II.

Most of the other leaders present represent countries that supported the U.S. stance on Iraq, including Italy, Romania and Poland.

The participating presidents have a mainly ceremonial function and do not formulate national policy.

"Trans-Atlantic relations … are important for the security of the world, are important for security in Europe," Klestil said. "This opinion was shared by all of us."

Ahead of the war, a rift also deepened between what U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld dubbed the "New Europe," ex-communist states who strongly backed the U.S. stance on Iraq, and "Old Europe," countries including France and Germany that strongly opposed the war.

Rau expressed confidence that that rift, too, was mending.

"I believe that the 'old' and the 'young' can work together to create Europe _ and that they can achieve this while maintaining friendly relations with the United States, working as partners and not as opponents," Rau said.

The Polish president, Aleksander Kwasniewski, indicated that European countries and the United States could find post-war common ground by cooperation in the reconstruction of Iraq. The Bush administration has assigned Poland the lead in a peacekeeping force in central Iraq that will be supplemented by troops from other nations.

"We need to fight for peace, for stability in Iraq and the Middle East," Kwasniewski said. "I think we can work together, United States and Europe."

And in an apparent nod to Germany and France, Kwasniewski said he didn't agree with Rumsfeld's description of Poland as part of the so-called "New Europe."

"I think this description 'Old' and 'New Europe' is wrong. Poland belongs to old Europe, even very old Europe," Kwasniewski said. "We are part of the European heritage."

In a joint letter to the president of Algeria, the 17 leaders also expressed their "sadness and dismay" that hundreds were killed by a massive earthquake that struck an area near the Algerian capital a day earlier.